


Our falcon flies as high as honor

by Cool_username2 (orphan_account)



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Divergence - The Battle of the Blackwater, Character Death, Constructive Criticism Welcome, Don't Examine This Too Closely, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Happy Ending, Major Character Undeath, Minor Character Death, My First AO3 Post, My First Fanfic, Original Character(s), Queen Shireen Baratheon, Shireen Baratheon Lives, What Was I Thinking?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-08
Updated: 2020-09-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:35:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 10,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25788202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/Cool_username2
Summary: Jon sires a boy from Rosanne - Artys and a daughter from Lysa - Jeyne. Artys is fostered at Dragonstone, until his father's death. He is forced to return to the Vale, as the war begins.Jeyne was always neglected by her mother in favor of her little brother Robert. That all changes, once her brother leaves the Vale again and she needs to rule the Eyrie in his absence.First chapter is kinda short, by the way. Sorry about that.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 8





	1. Prologue

Jon waited, outside of his maester's room, as his wife went into labour. He was worried about Rossane having another miscarriage and it wouldn't let him sleep.  
He stood there waiting, until maester Colemon called him in.  
"Your son is healthy" he began with a sour tone "but your wife has not survived"  
"Well, that is unfortunate" Jon answered. In fact he had never felt much for Rossane. He felt a sense of duty towards her, but he knew, that she didn't love him.  
"May I see my son, please"  
Colemon invited him into the room and handed him a small, crying baby. Jon took it in his arms and looked into its blue eyes.  
"He has Arryn eyes" Jon thought to himself.  
Jon felt guilty for being so happy. His behavior wasn't that of a man who had just lost his wife. Yet he could not help, but smile when he saw his son's face.  
"The boy will grow up without a mother" Jon thought as he gazed into his son's blue eyes "he'll also need a wet nurse"  
"And the boy's name" the old maester asked.  
Jon thought about it for a while. He thought about maybe Eddard or Robert, like his wards. He couldn't choose one, without offending the other though. Jon thought for a couple of minutes, until he finally settled on a name.  
"Artys" he said quietly "Artys Arryn"  
Jon would show his son to Ned and Robert, but not tonight. It was in the middle of the night and he wouldn't want to wake them.  
Jon gave Artys to Colemon and commanded him to find a wet nurse for the boy.  
Jon then went to his bed. It was empty for the first time in years. Jon again felt ashamed about his happines. And yet, despite all sleep came to him easy that night.


	2. Stannis

Stannis looked at the great map in Dragonstone, thinking about what he has learned. Robert's children were illegitimate and were a product of incest. He had learned that, along with Jon Arryn, but Jon was dead now and Stannis dared not tell his brother. He wouldn't believe him, most likely.  
And yet if the truth got out, it would most definitely lead to a war.  
"I have to tell Artys, that his father is dead" he thought to himself.  
Jon got sick almost immediately after they had found the truth. He was without almost any doubt poisoned.  
Soon Artys entered the hall. The boy did look like his father, despite being only sixteen years old . He was tall, almost tall enough to look Stannis in the eye, with blonde hair and blue eyes. The boy was clever and somewhat kind. He could be called handsome. Or at least Shireen thought so. And he was a good ward to Stannis all those years.  
"You called for me" the boy asked  
"Yes. I am afraid, that your father is dead"  
The boy stood silent for a couple of seconds, until he finally said something.  
"How... how did he die" Artys asked.  
"They say it was a fever..." Stannis didn't continue. He dared not tell the boy about Robert's kids.  
Artys looked like he wanted to cry. Stannis wasn't sure what to say. He remembered when his father died. He knew, that there was nothing, that could be said to make the boy feel better.  
"Your father has named you his heir" Stannis continued.  
"I will leave for the Vale in two days" Artys said. Stannis had nothing more to say, so he let the boy leave.  
"Artys" he called, before his ward left "your father would be proud"  
The boy nodded and left.  
In two days, Artys did leave Dragonstone. Stannis made sure, that his ship was heavily guarded, even though he needed every ship and man for the war, that was coming.  
"Lord Stannis, it was an honor to be your ward." The boy said, before he left.  
"It was an honor to have you as my ward" he said. Stannis had indeed grown to like the boy. He was strong and brave and Stannis hoped, that when the time came, he would choose right.


	3. Artys

Artys finally arrived at the bottom of the Valey below. He was just a few hundred meters away from home. It had taken him weeks to reach the port at Gulltown, due to the storms and bad weather, but he was finally home.  
At the bottom he saw Mya Stone and a couple of other men awaiting him. Artys remembered, that his father never traveled up and down the Eyrie by himself, due to the mountain clans.  
And of Mya, she was prettier, than he remembered. She had black hair and blue eyes and was almost as tall as Artys.  
"She looks like a Baratheon" Artys thought, as they were climbing the mountain. The path was high and treacherous, so he had to keep himself busy, from looking down.  
"Has anything interesting happened, while I was gone"  
"A lot, my lord" Mya replied "lady Stark brought Tyrion Lannister here and claimed, that he had tried to kill her son"  
"And did he"  
"I do not know. He requested a trial by combat. Ser Vardis was killed and the dwarf was set free."  
Artys had never heard of ser Vardis.  
"And my brother" Artys asked.  
"What about him, my lord" the girl spoke suprisingly well. Artys remembered, that his father had insisted on her being able to read, which Artys never understood.  
"How is he?" Artys barely remembered his brother. The last time he saw him, he was only three and was still breastfed. He did hear people say, that the boy was spoiled and inadequate.  
"Not well, my lord. He shakes and cries often"  
Artys rode silent for a while.  
"So it is as bad, as I thought" he decided.  
"And Jeyne"  
"Your sister? She is well, even though her mother seems to ignore her."  
Arrys had never liked Lysa Tully, but now he liked her even less. He remembered his sister, she was a sweet and decent child, yet her mother always ignored her for the sake of Robert.  
They stopped at Sky to rest in some time. Artys tried to get some sleep, but he couldn't. He was afraid of being lord, he was afraid of making decisions and restoring justice. He had rarely seenhis father judge people, but he often saw Stannis do it. He remembered, that Stannis had taught him to never make a difference between a commoner and a highborn man or woman. He punished all those, that broke the law and Artys never saw him make an exception for anyone.  
At this moment Mya Stone opened the door.  
"My lord we need to leave" she said.  
"Indeed we do"  
After an hour more of riding, they finally arrived at the Eyrie. Artys saw maester Colemon await him, along with some knights. His brother and Lady Lysa were not there and neither was Jeyne.  
"That is all well and good" he said after being greeted "but may I ask where my brother is" He had decided, that the faster he addressed the problem the better.  
"He is with his mother" Colemon began grimly "she is breastfeeding him"  
"Breastfeeding?" he said "the boy is six, is it not" "Yes my lord"  
  
"And he is still breastfed?"  
"Yes, my lord" Colemon said again.  
"And my fathrer allowed this to happen?"  
"He tried to stop it, he meant to send him away, but then his sickness came"  
Artys said nothing to that, he only told Colemon to bring them both to him. His father's "sickness" was becoming more suspicious every time he heard about it.  
His brother looked sickly and weak. He was short for his age and and was shivering.  
Lysa may have looked beautiful when she was younger, but now she certainly did not. She was old and almost fat, with her wrinkled skin, that looked like it would fall off her face.  
"Lord Arryn" she hissed "forgive me for..."  
"Colemon, take my brother away please" Artys did not want his brother to witness, what he was about to tell Lysa.  
"Of course, my lord, should I put him to sleep" the old maester asked as he dragged the aready shaking child. "I want to sleep" Robert screamed "and I want sweetmilk"  
"No, I wish to speak with him later and to you, about his ...condition"  
"Very well" Colemon said, as he kept dragging the still screaming boy.  
"What are you going to do to my son?" Lysa asked, as she tried to raise her voice.  
"Many things. Nothing, that isn't in his best interest" he answered as calmly, as he could "he will be taught how to read and wield a sword, when he is strong enough to do so. And you will stop breastfeeding him."  
"Jon let me raise the boy, as I saw fit..." she began to scream  
"And I saw the result. You have ruined this child. I am only glad that you haven't managed to ruin Jeyne. Why my father let you do this will forever remain a mystery to me" Artys knew, that she was lying. His father would never let this happen.  
"I am his mother" she kept screaming  
"Unfortunately you are, but that doesn't matter. This ends today. Now leave."  
Lysa began to scream at him. He couldn't understand what exactly, but he knew, that she wasn't happy. She was dragged away soon, even though she bit one of the guards.

He, then went to Robert and Colemon. His brother seemed to have calmed down, while the old maester sat next to him.  
"Maester can you please tell me what is wrong with the boy."  
"He has the shaking sickness. He shakes and trembles often. At the beginning I gave him sweetmilk, but I have to stop, because it's dangerous for him at this point."  
"And what else can you give him" Artys asked.  
"I give him dreamwine and poppy milk to make him sleep, but there isn't much else that I can do"

"Very well" Artys said. He had no desire to do anything else that day, he didn't even stop to see Jeyne, he just wanted to get some sleep.


	4. Jeyne

Jeyne had just woken up, when she was called by her brother.

When she found Artys he was sitting in his small cabinet, holding a letter. He was surrounded by other men. They all looked worried by it's contents. 

"My lord, please reconsider" one of the men began "Stannis has little to no support. You should join Renly or Joffrey."  
"Stannis doesn't offer any proof for what he claims. He could very well be lying about the king's children"  
"He isn't lying" Artys said "I know Stannis, he wouldn't lie about it"  
Jeyne remembered Joffrey and Myrcella and Tommen. Joffrey was always cruel. He called Robert names and slapped him. Not that Jeyne didn't want to sometimes slap Robert too. Myrcella and Tommen were always nice to her.  
She remembered Stannis too. The king's brother was always angry and never smiled, unlike his brothers. Jeyne didn't understand why Artys would join Stannis instead of Renly. Renly was young and handsome and kind.  
"Enough" Artys said finally "out, all of you. Except you Jeyne, you stay."  
Artys looked tired and worried. He looked a lot like Jeyne. They had the same hair and the same eyes. She often wondered if Robert was even related to her and Artys, given how little he looked like them. She felt like her half-brother was closer to her, than Robert. Jeyne wondered what he wanted from her.  
"As you might have guessed, king Robert is dead. For reasons, that I won't get into Joffrey is not the rightful king and there will be a war."  
Jeyne stood there, confused, as she understood little of what she was being told.  
"I will be leaving the Eyrie again in a week, when all of the bannermen have arrived" he continued "While I'm gone, you will be in command of the castle. Don't worry, you will only need to welcome the lords who have arrived late and deal out judgement to criminals."

"Why me and not Robert" she asked  
"You're a clever girl, you can't reasonably expect me to let Robert rule. I can't have him offend the bannermen, who come to pledge me their service "  
That was fair enough. Even though Robert shaked less often and scramed and cried less, he still couldn't be trusted with anything important.  
"How long will you be gone?"  
"As much as necessary. It might be a month or it might be a year. Or I might not return at all."  
Did her brother expect to die? First her father, now this. And her brother had just gotten here. She barely spoke to him, even though he was the only one who seemed to treat her with respect ever since her father had died.  
"Is that all, Artys" she asked silently.  
"Yes that's all." He said "... wait one more thing. I know that I told maester Colemon, but don't let Lysa breastfeed Robert. And no matter how much he yells and screams, do not give him what he asks, unless it's actually a reasonable request, which I doubt."  
Jeyne witnessed Artys her brother's anger, when he heard, that Lysa had defied him and had breastfed Robert.  
That was the first time, she ever saw her brother angry. Her father was always calm and rarely raised his voice and so was her brother.

"You can leave now" Artys said, as he began to write some letter.


	5. Artys

Artys rode silently along with his men. The bannermen brought more men than expected. Artys left the Vlae with twelve thousand men, which was more than he had hoped for, but they still weren't enough to stand against the northmen.  
They were riding down the Kingsroad, when they had heard of a large battle down the Fork. Apparently Stark and Lannister forces were about to collide. When they arrived, the battle was already over. The Lannisters were retreating, while the Starks chased them down.  
Artys gave the order for his men to join the Starks, but it was too late for it to matter. The Lannister forces had already retreated. 

Soon he was taken to Robb Stark, the new lord of Winterfell. Robb was young, maybe a year younger than Artys. He was handsome, even though his hair reminded Artys of Lysa Arryn's, which was almost enough for him to dislike a man.  
"Lord Arryn, thank you for your help in..." he began.  
"What for, the battle was alredy won" Artys replied.  
"True enough" Robb replied "yet I must ask you, what brings you here"  
"The war, same as you. I plan to join Stannis and I advise you to do the same"  
Artys hoped, that Robb would do it. He had no desire to fight him. And even if he did, he was ridiculously outnumbered.  
"Robert's children are abominations, born of incest, making Stannis the rightful heir." Artys continued, as he quoted Stannis's letter.  
"And how would you know that. Does Stannis offer you any evidence" Robb asked.

Artys couldn't provide any evidence. That was one of the reasons for people not to join Stannis. Artys knew, that he was saying the truth, because he knew him, but others had no reason to trust Stannis.  
"Joffrey killed your father" Artys said, trying to change the subject "Is justice not what you want. Stannis can give you that and more. Do you want the man, that killed your father to sit the Iron Throne?"  
"Joffrey has a brother. Once I get my justice, he will be the rightful heir, unless what Stannis says is true."  
"It is" Artys replied immediately "and do you expect, that Tommen will forget who killed his brother and his mother. I doubt it."  
Artys in fact did not know Tommen. Jeyne had said, that she did. Too bad, that she had to stay at the Eyrie.  
Robb seemed to think about that for a few moments.  
"Very well, then. The North will join Stannis's cause"  
Artys signed with relief. He had no desire to fight Robb and he would lose if he did.  
"I knew, that you would make the right choice" Artys lied "now forgive me, but there are many things, that I must do"  
There were indeed. He intended to write to Stannis, about convincing the northmen to join their cause. With them on their side, bictory was inevitable. He also wished to write home. He was thinking of asking Robb Stark, to marry Jeyne, when the time comes, even though he had no desire to marry his sister off to a man, that he'd just met, even though his father had tried to do the same.


	6. Artys

Artys never expected for the war to be this easy. He was completely sure, that Renly would surrender. After all, he was outnumbered and couldn't hope to defeat his brother.  
Artys would know soon enough. Stannis had taken him to the negotiations, for reasons unbeknownst to him.  
Artys thought about that, while he rode silently, along with the king, Davos and the red woman. He did not like the red woman. She always spoke of king's blood and her red god. Her devotion to her god and the fact, that she converted so many men to her faith scared Artys, but what scared him the most was the fact, that Stannis seemed to trust her. Artys had never seen a man, more dismissive towards the gods, than him. If he believed in her god, then she probably had power, that even he could not deny.  
Aside from all that, Melisandre was a beautiful woman. She had long red hair and full round breasts. And she was tall enough to look Stannis in the eye, which few men could do.  
Davos seemed like a good man, despite his low birth. Artys did remember him, from Dragonstone, where he heard the story of how he got his knighthood. The man had spent his life as a smuggler, yet despite that Stannis seemed to respect him and value his counsel.  
Soon they reached Renly and his men. He had come almost alone, as he was accompanied by only his kingsguard.  
"Rainbow guard" Artys corrected himself in his head. And in fact, those men did not wear the white cloaks, that the kingsguard wore in King's landing. They wore cloaks with many colors, made of beautiful fabrics, that indeed looked like small rainbows. Artys thought of the idea of killing or capturing one of them, during the battle. He would tale the cloak and hang by his bedroom in the Eyrie, to remind averyone of his deed. The king's brother himself was well dressed and handsome. He had all the Baratheon traits, that Stannis and Shireen shared.  
"And Mya Stone" Artys thought to himself.  
Artys had never seen two men look so different, yet so alike, as Renly and Stannis.  
"I must say that I'm impressed" Renly said, breaking the silence "I never expected you to rally such support. Turns out, you do have powerful friends"  
"Indeed, I do. You would do well to become one of them."

"Would I" Renly chuckled "whose banners are those" he added, as he looked, towards Stannis's banner.  
"They are mine" the king replied.  
"I suppose if we both used the same banner, the battle would be terribly confusing"  
Artys never approved of Stannis using a different sigil. It would confuse men and they wouldn't see Stannis as a real Baratheon. Artys had tried to talk to him ahout it and so did Davos, but he dismissed their concerns. Stannis's behavior since the war began greatly confused Artys. He changed his banner, he adopted a different religion and keeped the red priestess close, despite the rumours he had heard of her killing the old maester at Dragonstone.  
"That's enough, Renly" the king thundered "I shall have no more of your mockery. In the name of the mother, who bore us both, I will give you until tomorrow to strike your banners and bow before me. If you do so, I will give you your old seat on the council, if not, I will destroy you"  
The king's brother chuckled, as he took off of his horse.

"Why wait until tomorrow? I intend to do it right now"  
"You will surrender?" Stannis said, confused.  
"I will. As I said, I never expected you to have so many allies. Now, let's get this over with."  
Renly got on his knee, as everyone watched, too suprised to say anything.  
"I Renly of the house Baratheon" he began "pledge myself to your service"  
"I king Stannis of the house Baratheon first of his name, lord of the andals, the rhyonar and the first men, absolve you of your crime of trason aginst your rightful king. I hereby restore all of your lands and titles. Now rise, my brother."

Renly rose, but he said nothing, even though Artys noticed, what could be considered a smile on the lips of the lord of Storm's end.

That same night the Tyrrells fled from the camp. Apparently Renly had made the mistake to not consummate the marriage immediately. King's landing would still fall easily though. The war was essentially won, with barely any bloodshed and Artys would learn the truth of his father's death and get his justice soon.  



	7. Jeyne

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way, I forgot to do this at the beginning.  
> At the start of the story, the ages are:  
> Artys - 16  
> Jeyne - 13

Jeyne sat on her brother's cabinet, going through his letters. Mostly news from the war and marriage proposals for Jeyne and Artys. She made sure to read the latter and seperate those, that were for her and those for her brother.

Artys rarely wrote to the Eyrie. The only thing, that seemed to interest him was Robert's health. Jeyne's little brother was getting healthier over the last couple of weeks. He almost didn't shake and became less aggressive, once everyone stopped giving into his fits.

Despite all that he was still a sickly and inadequate child. Jeyne had to stop letting him into the great hall, while criminals were brought to her, because Robert demanded, that they are pushed through the moon door. And yet, Jeyne was convinced, that her brother's decisions, regarding Robert's health were the right ones. She went through a couple more letters and documents, until she found one by her brother. It was sent from Storm's end. She quickly broke the seal and began reading.  
_My dear sister.  
I wish to inform you of the fact, that lord Renly has surrendered. He has bent the knee to his brother and join his forces to ours. Well, most of them. The Tyrrells abandoned that very night. It matters little. We will march for King's landing tomorrow. Once the city falls, I will return to the Vale. If I am alive, that is. I am also thinking of marrying you to Robb Stark. If you agree, of course. Know that I won't force you to marry anyone, as the political situation does not require such action. Not that I couldn't force you to marry. I could, easily. Anyways, I hope that taking care of things on the Eyrie isn't too much of a problem. I am pleased by the fact, that Robert's health is getting better. Maybe he'll also stop being a pice of shit at some point. _

_Artys Arryn. Lord of the Eyrie._

Jeyne put the letter down and thought about it. King's landing would fall, she already knew. Or at least everyone else thought, that it would. They said, that the city would be taken easily, yet Artys still spoke of his hypothetical death often. He was probably joking, though. His letters always had a hint of mockery to them.  
And she understood little of his talk of marriage. She had never met Robb Stark. And why would her brother try to marry her off to him.  
Jeyne put the letter down and headed for the great hall. She didn't find her mother there, as usual. Ever since Artys forbade her from breastfeeding Robert and had him taken away from her, as she wouldn't let the boy leave her side, Lysa Arryn (or Tully as Artys insisted on calling her) rarely ever showed herself.

Jeyne was perfectly aware of the fact, that her mother didn't love her. Not that she had tried to hide it. Ever since Robert was born, Lysa cared little of Jeyne.  
Jeyne sat on the large throne, as she listened to people's complaints. Smaller lords, who didn't join her brother came to reaffirm their loyalty and complain about their disputes over lands.

Jeyne couldn't understand why her brother loved this so much. She liked the power, of course, but as she sat there, listening to people complaining, she couldn't help, but thinkn of something else.  


That all ended, once maester Colemon asked to speak to her about a "very important matter".  
"My lady" the old man began "we have recieved a letter from Gulltown. Apparently a couple of ships traveling to Dorne, came across a ship from King's landing"  
"And just how is that important" Jeyne asked.  
"Just let me finish, please. So, as I was saying, they attacked said ship. When it finally surrendered, they found, that princess Myrcella was on board, along with ser Arys, who died defending her."  
Jeyne remembered Myrcella from King's landing. She was a pretty and kind girl. "  
What was she doing on the way to Dorne?" She wondered. She could be a valuable hostage to her brother. Jeyne stood confused for a couple of seconds.  
"Artys needs to know of this" she said, finally.


	8. Artys

Artys stood in the small council chamber, along with lord Davos, waiting for the king.  
"Artys Arryn, master of ships" he said quietly to himself.  
Stannis gave him the title, after the battle of the Blackwater was won. The city fell easily, mostly due to the large numbers of Stannis's army. Near the end of the battle Lord Tywin arrived, along with the Tyrrells, but it mattered little. Despite all that, most of the toyal fleet was destroyed and it would now be his duty to restore it.  
Soon the king came in, along with the rest of the council. They all took their seats, as Stannis began the meeting.  
Davos was named hand of the king, immediately after the battle. Renly was given his previous position of master of laws and Melisandre was named mistress of whisperers. They still lacked a great maester and a master of coin, though. Pycelle had fled the city along with Varys after the battle was over and the master of coin would likely be Bravoosi. 

"Lords of the council, thank you for coming here today"  
"Not that we have a choice" Renly laughed.  
"Enough, Renly" Stannis said "you do have a choice. There are plenty of men, that could easily replace you. I have not forgotten your treason nor the mercy, that I showed you."  
The lord of Storm's end said nothing more.  
"First, we have the matter of ser Kevan, Tyrion Lannister, the kingslayer and Cersei Lannister. The latter is of course to be executed for her crimes."  
"Maybe we should have let ser Ilyn finish the job." Artys chuckled.  
Once they had entered the Red keep, they had found ser Ilyn, about to execute the noble ladies on Cersei's orders, if Robb Stark's pretty little sister was to be trusted.  
"I propose, that ser Jaime is sent to the wall. That goes for Lancel Lannister too, considering the fact, that he also fucked Cersei" Renly said.  
"As for Tyrion and Kevan, they have not committed any crimes, as long as I'm concerned. And with lord Tywin dead, Casterly rock needs an heir" Artys added.  
"True enough" Davos added "they simply did their duty to the man, that they considered the rightful king."  
"Very well" the king said "I will sign the documents for their pardon, once we are done here."  
"Same goes for the Tyrrells, I suppose" Renly asked  
"The Tyrells didn't care who the rightful king is though" Artys said, even though he hoped, that he could marry Margaery Tyrrell. "they fled our camps, once you joined us. They are led by nothing, but blind, treacherous ambition"  
"Artys is right" Stannis said "there must be some form of punishment for them. Treason will not go unanswered. "  
"Maybe take some of their lands, give them to smaller lords." Davos added.  
"Very well. We will discuss this in more detail later. We also need to deal with Tommen and Myrcella. With Joffrey dead, they could try to take the throne. "  
"What about them" Renly asked "they are bastards. Name them Tommen and Myrcella Waters and be done with it."  
"That's good enough, but we don't even know where Myrcella is."  
"May I propose something else?" Artys began "name them Tommen and Myrcella Lannister. The rock needs an heir, after Tyrion dies and the dwarf is unlikely to marry. And about Myrcella's location, my sister sent me this yesterday." He said, as he gave Stannis the letter from Jeyne.  
The king looked at the letter silently for a couple of seconds.

"So Myrcella is at the Vale?" He said finally.  
"Indeed. She was on her way to Dorne, apparently"  
"Very well" Stannis said "Davos, you will go and negotiate the surrender of the Lannisters. I believe that Willas Tyrell will surrender if none of his allies remain and he would want his father to be freed, I suppose."  
"As you command, your grace" the king's hand replied.  
"Artys, is the royal fleet in condition to fight the ironborn?" The king asked.  
"From what I've gathered, no. I don't think so. But, perhaps, I could go to Gulltown and take the Arryn fleet from there."  
"By the time you arrive to the islands, Balon Greyjoy will be dead" Melisandre said with her quiet voice.  
"Care to elaborate on that?"  
"I saw it in the flames. I do not question the will of the Lord of the light"  
Artys never truly trusted Melisandre and her red god. In fact he only refrained from mocking her, because Stannis had told him so and because she scared him. The red priestess seemed to scare everyone, though and Artys quickly went from looking at her breasts to shivering, when he saw her.  
"Very well. If what she says is true, then Theon will be the rightful heir to the Iron islands. You will take them relatively easy, if parts of the Iron fleet join you."  
"But if Balon still lives, his son will be considered a traitor to his people. His reign will be unstable and he will probably be assassinated."  
"You're right. It's too big of a risk. Take the fleet from Gulltown and go straight to the Iron islands." The king commanded.  
"There is also the matter of the wildlings" Davos continued.  
"Robb Stark will deal with them. He leaves the city in a couple of days." Stannis replied "The wildlings are badly armed and undisciplined. They should be easy to deal with. Anyways, I conclude this meeting. We will meet again in three days. Ser Imry will serve as master of ships in lord Arryn's absence."  
With that everyone left the chamber. Artys didn't head directly to his chambers. Instead, he headed to Robb Stark's. Once he opened the door, he found Robb speaking to his little sister.  
Robb was a handsome man, though he was really young. He and his sister shared the same bright auburn hair and blue eyes. Jeyne would probably like him, or so her brother hoped. "Artys. It's a pleasure to see you, why are you here." Robb said, even though Artys knew, that it wasn't a pleasure to see him and that he had interrupted something important.  
"I simply wish to ask you, whether or not, you would visit the Eyrie, once I am done with the ironborn. I would like for you to meet my sister and hypothetically engage her." The lord of the Vale spoke, knowing that his father would never marry Jeyne off to a stranger. He did ask her in a letter, though and she agreed.  
"I am glad that you made me this offer, lord Arryn. I am would be delighted to meet your sister and see the beauty of your home, that my father has described to me many times. I need to deal with the wildlings though." Robb said with a confused look on his face, clearly not expecting such an offer.  
"As you wish. I am not pushing you."

Artys left Robb and went to sleep immediately. The journey from King's landing to the Vale and then to the Iron islands would be a long one.


	9. Jeyne

Jeyne left her bedroom, once she woke up. She put on her black dress. Jeyne hated it, but she had to mourn her mother, despite all. Lysa Arryn had thrown herself from her window once she heard of the death of a man named Petyr. Jeyne had heard the name in King's landing, but she never met the man himself. Jeyne felt bad and disgusted by the fact, that she didn't feel sadness from her mother's death. In fact, she had never felt much about her mother, considering the fact that she barely spoke to her, since Robert was born. She headed for the great hall, but instead of finding the empty weirwood throne, she saw her brother sitting in it.  
Artys looked different, from before he left. He looked tired and a bit worried. His hair had grown longer, yet he still couldn't grow a beard, no matter how much he tried. "Hello sister" he greeted calmly.  
"Artys, you didn't announce yourself"  
"I didn't think, that I'd have to announce myself in my own castle" he laughed "how are you, was everything all right while I was gone? Why are you dressed in black?"

"My mother died"  
"Well, that is unfortunate" her brother said, but Jeyne only saw relief on his face. She didn't blame him, though. Lysa wasn't his mother after all.  
"Forgive me, I'll leave you to your mourning"  
Jeyne didn't stop him from leaving, even though she wanted to speak to him more.  
On the next day, Jeyne saw her brother, sitting in his weirwood throne again. Jeyne felt relieved from the fact, that she no longer had to deal with his responsibilities.  
"Jeyne. I need to talk to you" her brother said silently "Firstly, I must soon leave again. I need to retake the Iron islands from lord Balon. In the meantime, you will rule the Eyrie again"  
Jeyne scoffed softly, but her brother paid it no mind. He obviously didn't care whether or not she wanted to rule in his absence.   
"By the way" he continued "you did well, when you sent me the letter about Myrcella, good work. In fact, I mean to send her away to King's landing tomorrow"  
Jeyne thought about that for a couple of seconds, until she remembered what her father had told her about Rhaegar's children. She didn't want to let the girl die.  
"You can't do that" Jeyne shouted, even though she herself knew, that she could never change her brother's mind.  
"I can't?" Artys said confused and a bit angry.  
"Stannis will kill her" she continued, even though she didn't know what she hoped to accomplish.  
"Jeyne, I assure you, that Stannis will not kill her. And even if he would, there wouldn't be much, that I could do about it"  
"He will kill her, just as Robert killed Aegon and Rhaenys." she cried out, thinking of the idea of this sweet innocent child being executed.  
"He won't. Stannis is not his brother. Robert was a fool, who was so blinded by his hate for Targaryens, that he would let Tywin kill children. Stannis is not such a man and he will not kill Myrcella. In fact, he will name her a legitimate Lannister. I have the documents with me, right now." Artys said.

Jeyne began to calm down, even though she still feared what her brother and the king would do. She doubted, that Artys would ever let the king kill an innocent child. Even though he never seemed to be as honorable or kind as her father, he still wouldn't let that happen.  
"When are you leaving?" She asked her brother. Trying to forget all about her doubts.  
"In two days. By the way, Robb Stark may come here, while I am gone. I trust, that you will make him feel welcome enough"  
Jeyne felt angry and sad again.  
"You are going to make me marry him, are you not"  
she asked angrily. "I won't make you marry him. I'm simply creating the opportunity for you to marry him, if you so desire. And there's nothing to worry about. Robb is a good and honorable man" her brother replied, unimpressed by her anger.  
Jeyne thought about that. She knew, that Artys wouldn't force her to do anything, that she doesn't want to. She knew, that her brother was a good man and he loved her.  
"Very well, I will talk to him and welcome him into the Eyrie. Yet you have to marry too at some point." She spoke the last sentence extremely carefully. 

"Indeed I do" her brother sighed.  
They both stood silent for a couple of seconds. Artys didn't even ask about Robert, even though Jeyne wanted to tell him, that his health had improved and people could jave a meaningful conversation with him now.  
In a couple of seconds maester Colemon came, panting into the great hall, with a letter in his hand.  
"Lord Arryn..."  
"Not now" Artys said silently.  
"Lord Arryn it's very important"  
"All right, let me see, just calm down" he said, as he started to read. Jeyne was hungry and wanted to eat, but the slightly terrified look on her brother's face made her stay.  
"He's dead sooner than expected" Artys laughed, despite being obviously disturbed.  
"Who is" Jeyne asked.  
"And when was he expected to die" the old maester asked, looking as confused as her.  
"She said, that he would die, before I get to the Iron islands, but I didn't expect it so soon" her brother whispered.  
"Who said that?"  
"Doesn't matter. I will leave tomorrow and I need to find Robb Stark and Theon Greyjoy. They're probably at the Wall right now" Artys continued, almost as if he spoke to himself. And he apparently did not intend to let Jeyne know what was happening, despite everything, that she had done for him. She didn't even feel angry at this point, she just had to make peace with the fact, that both of her brothers were pieces of shit in their own ways.  
"Balon Greyjoy is dead, in case you were wondering. His brother, Euron named himself king of the Iron islands. His brothers and Balon's daughter don't support him, though." Artys said, seemingly having came back to reality "Theon is the rightful ruler now and I need to find him."

Jeyne knew, that her brother wasn't telling her everything, but she didn't insist to know more, as she knew, that she wouldn't be told anything more. Instead she left the hall and left her brother to his thinking. Jeyne had accepted the fact, that her brother would never care enough to tell her what was really happening. And despite that, Artys and Robert were the only family, that she had left.  
She went to eat and found little Robert, waiting for her. The boy was objectively more healthy. He had grown a couple of inches in the last month, his hair had grown longer and he ate everything, that he was given.  
"Will Artys join us today" Robert asked, with his thin voice.  
"No, I don't think so. He is leaving again tomorrow"  
Robert said nothing and simply continued to eat. For the first time in her life, Jeyne felt, what could be pride and love towards her little brother.

"When will he be back" Robert asked again.  
"To be honest, I don't know" Jeyne said silently, as she finished her food and left.


	10. Artys

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry about that one, I think it turned out kind of bad, I just couldn't pick the words well. I hope you like it, regardless.

Artys stood silently as his ship moved through the waves. It had been three days, since he had left the Wall with Theon.  
Robb stayed at the Wall, as he had to deal with the wildlings and their king.

Artys did not stay at the Wall for too long. Even though he admitted, that it was a magnificent construct, Artys couldn't stand the cold there. It was ridiculous, how little it bothered the northmen. Due to this, Artys left, as soon as Theon agreed to go with him.  
Artys wasn't sure how to feel about Theon. He was an objectively brave and handsome man, yet he was not as honorable as Robb was. He paid for women and mocked his men.  
"Prepare to land" Artys said to the man next to him, as they approached Deepwood Motte.  
Robb had informed him of ironborn, that had taken the seat of house Glover. Artys had promised to take care on his way to the Iron islands. It was on his way and he could take their ships.  
Deepwood Motte wasn't a particularly impressive castle. It was mostly made out of wood and it's walls could be broken down in minutes. "A wooden pisspot on a hill" Theon called it and Artys could hardly disagree.  
"Lord Yohn" Artys called, once they set up a camp a couple of miles away from the castle.  
"Yes my lord" the old man thundered.  
Despite his age, Yohn Royce was still a strong man and reliable. What he had to do wasn't too important, yet Artys wanted to be sure about it.  
"Lord Royce, I need you to take some men – around a thousand and go around the castle, that way we can surround the ironborn and not let them escape. "

"I understand, my lord. But I must ask you something. Is this really necessary? This is a weak castle and it will fall quickly and the ironborn are outnumbered."  
"It's not about the castle" Artys explained "I don't want them to escape and alert Euron. And I want to see if I can convince them to join us."  
"A fine plan, my lord. I will do as you command."  
His father had taught Artys much of the lords, that he could trust and those, that he could not. Lord Royce was among the former. Artys had heard much of his honesty, his barvery and his loyalty.  
On the morning, Artys and his men marched up to Depwood Motte. He stood next to Theon, as he watched the gates getting broken down. The ironborn realised what was happening far too late. Once the enemy finally tried to fight them back, the gates had already fallen.  
The ironborn were great warriors, that could not be denied, but they lacked discipline. They were armed with lots of different weapons, ranging from swords to axes and were led by a woman, maybe two years older than Artys. She was suprisingly tall, with short black hair, with spurts of blood in it.  


A single thing, that Artys could not deny was that the ironborn fought well. They should have known, that there is no way, that they can win, yet they stayed and fought to the end.  
Artys tried to hit the woman with his sword, but he missed. His sword was too long and her axe was too short for him to block her hits and he had to try and move out of the way of her axe.

He tried to jump back, once again to get out of the way, but this time, his luck abandoned him. He tripped and fell on the ground.

Artys tried to stand up, but he knew, that it was too late. Suddenly he felt a terrible, blinding pain in his left hand.  
"She cut out my fucking finger" he thought, as he looked at his hand in horror.

Artys began to scream, as he saw the blood spurt from his hand. He rose on his feet, somehow, but he couldn't do much, but swing his sword, to no avail  
"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck" he screamed, having forgotten how to say any other word. Artys knew, that he wouldn't be able to stand much longer.

A couple of seconds after he had lost his finger, Artys saw lord Yohn and a couple of other men take the woman down.  
"My lord, are you all right" Yohn asked, as he saw that his lord had fallen on the ground.  
"Don't kill her" Artys whispered "I want to talk to her" he wanted to add, but he wasn't strong enough to say it. The last thing he saw before passing out was the men picking him up and taking him to the maester's tent.


	11. Jeyne

Jeyne sat in her weirwood throne, thinking about her situation. Robb Stark was supposed to arrive in a week, yet her brother was nowhere to be seen. The people of the Vale had began to worry. 

Yet the work, that she was left with was hard and it was a lot. People came to the castle, to ask things of her. It could be justice or gold, or protection. Father never taught her any of that, all that she did was look at the way her brother and her father did things.

Jeyne stood on the throne and thought, until maester Colemon found her. The old man looked very weak, with his thin shoulders and long face.  
"My lady" the maester whispered, as he bowed.

"What is it? Is it a letter from my brother?"  
"Yes, but we will leave that for later. Now, there are many people here, asking for your help."  
"Bring them in, please.  
Most complaints consisted mostly of that. People asked for gold or food, or protection. Until one man came forward with a young girl, next to him.  
"My lady, I come here to ask for justice. Two days ago, my daughter was raped. By one of your knights."

Jeyne sighed. Her brother had knighted too many men, after the war ended and the end result were men, who refused to follow the oaths, that they took.  
Jeyne called all the men in the Eyrie and lined them up.

"Can your daughter recognize any of those men?"  
The young girl came forward, silently from behind her father. Only now, could Jeyne get a better look at her. She was not much older, than Jeyne, maybe at the age of Artys. She was short for her age, with large, confused eyes.  
"Which one of those men did this." Jeyne asked.  
"This one" the girl whispered.  
Jeyne sighed. It truly was a knight and she wasn't sure what to do. He was old, maybe fifty, with white, unwashed hair, that looked like seaweed and a long nose.  
"Ser Olyvar" she greeted, as he came near her throne "where were you last night ser."  
"I was here, in the castle all day." He replied.  
"And you didn't, perhaps sneak out to the village in the middle of the night and then return early in the morning?"  
"With all due respect, my lady, that is absurd."  
"Are you aware of the fact, that I could verify your claim, easily?"  
"Yes, my lady." He replied, but a shadow of fear passed through his face.  
Jeyne ordered for Mya Stone to be brought to the great hall. The girl was tall and pretty, even though little Robert seemed to dislike her. Jeyne could easily understand why her brother had fallen in love with her when he was younger. And she could see, that she had at least some Baratheon blood in her veins, as Artys claimed.  
"So, have you let ser Olyvar go down to the valey, lately."  
"Yes, my lady. Yesterday, before dark and in the morning, today. He said, that he had important business near a village, not far from the castle."  
"You lying bitch" the old knight screamed "I will fucking kill you, whore." "Silence" lady Arryn yelled. Jeyne felt confused, on what to do. The truth was obvious, the punishment was also obvious, but she didn't know how her brother would react to her killing a knight. She stood silent for a couple of seconds, until she made her decision.  
"Ser Olyvar, you took an oath, when you were knighted, am I correct?" She said, as loudly as she could.  
"I have my lady." The man said, with a shaking voice.  
"And you swore to protect the weak and the innocent. It appears, that you have broken, said oath. For that crime you will be punished. You can either be gelded, sent to the Wall or you could be killed."  
The fear dissapeared from the knight's face, all of a sudden and he smiled.  
"I choose death" he thundered.  
The young lady was shocked. Why would he do that? Gelding isn't worse than death and he could regain his honor at the Wall. Then Jeyne realised what he was hoping to accomplish.  
"Very well. Bring Mord here, please. And open the moon gate."  
Mord was called for and came into the great hall in a couple of minutes. He worked as executioner and a guard, at the sky cells, for as long as Jeyne could remember. He was a gigantic man, with a large head and many missing teeth. Even Artys was a little scared of him or at least didn't like him.  
"Mord, ser Olyvar, please!"  
In that very moment, the young lady saw fear return to the man's eyes. He began to scream and fight, as Mord grabbed his hand.  
"Please don't. Don't do it, it wasn't me."  
"You made your choice, ser Olyvar." Lady Arryn yelled, trying not to look away.  
"You fucking bitch" he screamed, as he fell to his death.

"That is enough for today." Jeyne said. She had no desire to look at such things again. "May I see the letters, please?" "Of course, my lady. One of the letters is from Winterfell and is addressed specifically to your brother. The other is for you" "Just tell me what it says." Artys never let anyone, other than him read his letters, but Jeyne knew maester Colemon, since she was a little girl and her father trusted him.

"My dear sister" the old man began "I am happy to tell you, that the iron fleet will pose little threat to me. Euron does not have the full support of the ironborn and my fleet outnumbers his. Some ironborn, led by Asha Greyjoy, have already joined me. Asha has agreed to give me valuable information, about Euron and his men. She also cut off my finger. Doesn't matter, she fought well. I will be back in less than a month, probably, since Pyke will fall in a couple of days. Tell Robert, that I mean to send him to Storm's end, as a squire to Mace Tyrell." Colemon handed Jeyne the letter. "I won't bore you with all of your brother's titles my lady." "As you wish. You may leave now." Jeyne left for her bedroom too. Artys would probably refuse to marry Myrcella. She was too young anyway. And yet he had to marry. Maybe the daughter of one of his bannermen... "Doesn't matter. He knows what to do" she thought to herself, as she laid on her bed "that's one responsibility, that he can't pass on to me."


	12. Artys

Artys sat in his small cabin, as he felt his ship move through the waves. He looked at his left hand and his shortened finger. It wasn't that bad. He had some difficulty eating, but he could still hold a shield and get dressed, with little to no problem.  
"What is it" he asked, as he heard a knock on his door.  
"My lord, you asked for Asha Greyjoy to be brought to you."  
"Ah, yes bring her in here."  
A couple of men brought the ironborn princess into the cabin, chained up. She was a beautiful woman and she resembled her brother a lot. They had the same black hair and the same black eyes. In fact, Artys was a bit embarrassed by the fact, that he had to be told who she was.  
"Remove the chains" he commanded "please sit!"  
She sat down without saying a word.  
"Leave" he said to the other men and turned to Asha "remember me?"  
"I do, you're the greenlander knigt, whose finger I cut off."  
"Lord. I am lord Artys Arryn" he laughed "and you're the ironborn princess, that lost Deepwood Motte. Not that it was that much of a castle, anyway. It wasn't important either. I suppose, that you came to the North to look for your brother"  
Asha nodded. "Why did you bring me here? What do you want from me?"  
"Multiple things. The first one is information."  
"Fuck off, I won't betray my people, regardless of what my brother does."

"You do not betray your people. Euron betrays your people every day, by fighting a war, that he knows is already lost, led by his own selfish ambition. He betrays them, with every ironborn, that will fall under my ships and my men. So, Greyjoy, tell me about your uncle, please!"  
Asha sat silent for a few seconds.  
"I suppose, that you're asking about Euron. Euron Greyjoy was banished from the islands, when I was very young. He fucked the wife of my other uncle, Victarion."  
"He was exiled just for that."  
People fucked other people's wives all the time in the Vale. Balon Greyjoy sounded more like a tyrant, than a wise lord.  
"He brought shame to Victarion that way and Victarion beat his wife to death."  


"Euron was exiled" Asha continued "he traveled the world and saw things, that you and I can't even imagine. He went to Essos and the free cities and even to ancient Valyria"  
If that was true, Euron was much more dangerous, than Artys thought.  
"He has an army of freaks and mutes by his side and he has dozens of bastards. A couple of weeks ago, he came back and he killed my father."  
"Do you have any proof of that?"  
"He returned to the islands a day after my father died. Do you need any more proof?"  
She had a point. It couldn't be a coincidence. "Does he have enough ships to beat me?"  
"Maybe. He doesn't have the full support of the ironborn. Some hate him and believe, that he killed my father and others support Theon." "I know, that Victarion is a fool, tell me about Aeron." Artys had heard a lot about the battle of Fair isle from Stannis. "Aeron is the priest of the drowned god. He is a fanatic, but fortunately for you, he supports Theon." "Did you come to Deepwood Motte to look for Theon?" "Yes, I did. Is that all?" "Almost" "What else do you want from me."  
"Join me! Convince your men to do the same."

Asha laughed.  
"And what will happen if I don't?"  
"Nothing. You will stay here, as a hostage, until the war is over. If you join me, I will let you fight for your people and for your vengeance."  
"What do you know of vengeance?"  
"More than you think." Artys thought. He could never forget the feeling of not knowing who poisoned his father. And he never would. Everyone who was there and could know was dead or could not be found.  
"All right" Asha said, finally "let me meet them and I will convonce them to fight for you."  
"They're spread over a couple of ships, you can talk to then tomorrow. You are free to leave now."  
Asha stood up and left the room.  
"Let her pass" Artys said, as the guards tried to stop her, once she stepped outside.  
"She is beautiful" was the last thing, that Artys thought, before she shut the door.


	13. Artys

Artys stood silent on his ship, as it slowly approached Pyke. The castle wasn't as impressive as the Eyrie or Storm's end, but it had a certain feeling of strength and might to it. It's mighty towers, standing, undefeated by the sea and the waves gave it a sense of power, that no other castle in Westeros could match.

Yet despite the talk of the size of the iron fleet, the castle was protected by only a handful of ships. That wasn't a surprise either. Euron had left Pyke to pillage the Reach and take the Shield islands. Artys failed to grasp the strategical importance of that move. There was no way, that he could hold them. Especially after the Tyrrells joined Stannis, when they saw, that they were left without any allies. At the end, attacking the Reach looked like nothing more than an act of pointless greed.

It was important that Pyke would fall easily. Euron would be on his way soon enough if he wasn't already. Artys just hoped, that Mace Tyrrell would chase him all the way here. Or that ser Kevan or Tyrion would come to help him, since dealing with the ironborn has always been a duty of the warden of the west.

After Artys set foot on firm ground, he walked towards the gates of Pyke, followed by the thousands of men behind him.

Soon Theon and Asha joined him. The lord of Pyke looked a lot like his sister. They had the same black eyes and hair and the same, seemingly perfect line of white teeth in their mouths.  
Once they reached the great gates of Pyke, Artys began to speak, hoping, that someone in the castle would listen. He doubted, that the ironborn would see reason, but it didn't hurt to try.  
"Open the gates of Pyke, in the name of king Stannis of the house Baratheon and let your rightful lord take his seat. There are thirteen thousand men in front of your gates. The castle will fall within hours. You can either surrender or suffer the consequences of your treason! If you surrender, your lives will be spared, if not you will die."

No reply came for a couple of seconds.  
"It appears, that they have made their choice, as expected" Artys sighed.  
"Wait, give them some time!" Asha said in a commanding tone. If it was anyone else, speaking to him in that manner, the lord of the Eyrie would remind them, that he is in command, but he didn't want to argue with Asha. In part because he liked her and also, because she scared him.

Asha was in fact right. In a couple of minutes the great gates of Pyke opened and the men inside surrendered. Artys was suprised. He never expected, that the ironborn would be smart enough to know when it's over.

"But it is not over" he realized "Euron will be back here in two days, three if I am lucky."

For the first time, since he arrived at the Iron islands, Artys felt fear. Yes, he would probably win, but he could die. His lands would be left to his spoiled brother, his sister would have to leave the Vale and he would be just a fading memory.  
Yet Artys tried not to show fear. He did not show fear, when he heard of Euron and of his armies or his cruelty. He celebrated his victory with the rest, despit knowing, that it was no true victory. Most men seemed to see the truth though. Barely anyone looked happy or relieved. Most knew, that this was not the end.

"This is a waste of time" lord Yohn told him, during a feast, the day after they took Pyke "we have to prepare for the upcoming battle. The Iron fleet will be here soon and we nees to be ready."  
"I know. There is nothing I can do about it, though. It's not my castle."

There was, in fact, plenty that Artys could do. His men were the majority and he could easily take the castle for himself. There wasn't any point in doing that, though, the iron born didn't like him as it was. They weren't happy with Artys being there and they choose not to speak to him, for the most time, expect for the occasional mockery from the side of Asha Greyjoy, regarding his missing finger. That didn't anger Artys much, though. Sometimes he even had to admit, that the wordplay was quite clever.

The lord of the Vale rose from his seat and headed to his chambers. Eating, thinking and falling into random fits of fear and panic, was what he did most of the time lately. Despite the way he presented himself, he did fear Euron and it would be foolish of him not to.

Just as he was opening the door to his room, he heard yelling from the great hall and then loud footsteps, approaching him. Soon Artys saw, a sweating, pale man running towards him. "My lord..." the man spoke loudly "lord Arryn...he is here. Euron Greyjoy is here..." Artys left he young man, immediately and headed for the great hall. People were standing around the large windows and looking at the horizon. The young lord left the hall and and looked through a small balcony. Artys looked at the sea, as he slowly began to make out some small figures. The more he looked, the more there were of them. The lord of the Vale could not see them clearly, and he didn't need to. His eyes narrowed and he felt panic take over his body at the sight fs Euron's gigantic fleet. Artys would be a fool to not fear him, indeed.


End file.
